Safety and unemployment problems have plagued the women in India for centuries. The newspapers are filled with reports of rapes, murders, and women committing suicide because of financial problems or abuse from their husbands. However, the goodnews is that a couple of government agencies namely, Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) and Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) have taken an initiative which will provide employment to rural women and enhance their safety while traveling. Under this initiative, a single woman or a group of women wishing to travel from KIA to any destination within Bangalore can avail special cabs (which are pink in color) which are only driven by women chauffeurs. The chauffeurs are reasonably trained in martial arts to help defend themselves in case of an emergency.

Details of the cabs:

1 Each and every special cab is fitted with a GPRS tracking system and an SOS switch in case of an emergency.

2 Only a single woman or a group of women can avail the special cab service. Women traveling with their families are not allowed to use this special cab service.

3 The cabs are pink and white in color.

4 The special cabs are all driven only by women chauffeurs.

5 The women chauffeurs are reasonably trained in martial arts to help defend themselves in case of an emergency.

Cab rates and timings:

1 The special cabs will operate 24/7.

2 They are priced at Rs 21.50 per km during the day and Rs 23.50 per km at night (From 7:00 PM onwards).

What BIAL and KSTDC Are Saying:

“The service has been implemented with an objective to provide a safe and secure mode of transport for women travelers from the airport, while also creating opportunities for women drivers to be self-employed”, KSTDC Managing Director (MD), Kumar Pushkar said.

“The initiative is an effort to contribute to the socio-economic development of women from villages around the airport by recruiting women drivers from the vicinity”, BIAL said.

“The women drivers will be fluent in multiple languages, well versed with local areas and trained in self-defense tactics to strengthen the safety and security of women passengers”, BIAL added.

Further information:

This initiative was flagged off on Monday (07/01/2019) and will no doubt make the lives of women easier in Bengaluru. The Government of India must implement this initiative in the other states of India as well and initiate more of such schemes for the welfare of women in India.